1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sound source data player for playing back sound source data. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for preparing a playlist of sound source data files selected by a user for playback in a sound source data player storing the sound source data files.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a sound source data player is used to play back sound source data files that have been prepared in various formats, such as MPEG audio layer 3 (MP3) and WAV formats. Recent development of technologies has allowed for miniaturization of sound source data players even when the players are provided with a storage capacity to store several hundred songs.
The storage capacity of the player, which allows a user to store a large number of songs, makes it necessary for the user to prepare a playlist of selected sound source data files. To this end, a conventional player has been designed so as to generate a playlist of sound source data files edited by the user, which includes only the individual information of the selected sound source data files, so that the user may readily play the selected songs by means of the playlist. The method of preparing the playlist is to repeatedly select desired songs from the list of all the sound source data files stored in the player, thus adding the selected songs to the playlist.
This method may be practically applied when a small number of songs are stored in the player considering the need for a user to memorize their melodies. However, if the number of songs stored in the player exceeds several hundred, it is practically impossible for the user to prepare a playlist by memorizing the melodies of all the songs stored in the player. Hence, in order to prepare a playlist of the desired songs, the user must check each one of the several hundred songs through playback, consuming a significant amount of time.
Various methods have been proposed to resolve the above problem. For example, a method of using a voice recognition device to enable the user to search sound source data by a voice command has been proposed. However, this proposal requires the additional expense of voice recognition devices and does not guarantee the precise detection of the desired sound source data. Another method has been proposed that allows a user to hum a melody which the player uses to search out the sound source data matching it. However, this proposal requires an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter for converting the hummed melody into a corresponding digital signal, together with comparing it with the several hundred songs stored in the player. In all, a satisfactory method for readily preparing a desired playlist is not available.